Two gardaí, who were called to what was described as a domestic dispute, found a semi-naked woman being assaulted by two men, a court heard
yesterday.
The evidence was given during a hearing of the garda who sought compensation for injuries received during the course of his duty.
Garda Michael O'Hara told the High Court that in April 2008 while patrolling in a police car in Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, he and a colleague had received an urgent call to a house from which neighbours reported they had heard screams.
Hand fractured
Judge Mary Irvine was told Garda O'Hara suffered a fracture to a bone in his right hand while trying to restrain one of the men. When overpowered and handcuffed the man had threatened to come back and shoot Garda O'Hara.
He told the court that his hand been in a full cast for a number of weeks. He had been out of work for several months and had been unable to play sports.
The judge awarded Garda O’Hara €14,000 compensation against the Minister for Finance.
The 28-year-old garda said during a Garda Compensation Hearing that when they arrived at the house in a Castleblayney housing estate he heard a woman shouting for help from inside.
Garda O’Hara, who is now stationed at Castlebar Garda station, Co Mayo, said in an affidavit that he and his colleague had entered the house through the unlocked front door and saw a semi-naked woman screaming at a man.
He told his barrister Bríd O’Flaherty that the woman had been wearing only an unbuttoned shirt and the man was holding her down on a couch in the sitting room, threatening to kill her.
Ms Justice Mary Irvine heard that a second man in the house was shouting abuse at the woman and encouraging the other man to “hit the bitch”.
Both men had been intoxicated and were agitated and aggressive.
Garda O’Hara said he tried to talk and reason with both men and, while doing so, succeeded in getting the woman out of the room. Her assailants had tried to follow her.
He said the two men, one of whom was stripped to the waist, had started to punch each other and he and his colleague managed to get them outside the house.
His colleague called for Garda assistance as the men were trying to get back into the house.
When back-up had arrived the men had been arrested and taken to Castleblayney Garda station. The woman had been placed in a police car for her own safety.